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He's NOT going to be a FS..... it doesn't get more obvious than that. He's going to be a solid SS. Thomas has as much chance as being a FS as Eifert did as being the Steelers 1st round pick. Absolutely zero.

He's NOT going to be a FS..... it doesn't get more obvious than that. He's going to be a solid SS. Thomas has as much chance as being a FS as Eifert did as being the Steelers 1st round pick. Absolutely zero.

pretty sure if you agree he's a bob sanders clone, you just agreed he COULD play FS... Not that I expect him to.... HOWEVER, if Clark went down and Shark was ready, I could see him on the field with Troy... just sayin...

I haven't understood the draft's the past few years. I'm assuming they like S. Thomas's speed more than P. Thomas's production. Still they have no one in the secondary outside of Troy who can catch an int.

And what does that have to do with anything I said? I said that the STeelers selected Thomas's speed over P. Thomas's production. What part of that is wrong? Is S. Thomas faster? Did P. Thomas have more production?

How about Ed Reed? He had 17 picks in 2 years. You rather have S. Thomas? See you can play the "Player X did this in college" all day. The fact is that P. Thomas had better production. Doesn't mean that S. Thomas can't play or that P.Thomas is going to be a great player. It's just an observation.

One of the main reasons Syracuse safety Shamarko Thomas was still avaliable in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft was his height. Thomas is considered very short by NFL standards at 5’9″, despite the fact he stands an inch taller than the average male based on Livestrong.com’s numbers.

Woodson is listed at 5’11″ and he is clearly a few inches taller than Thomas. Current Steelers safety Troy Polamalu stands 5’10″ and may follow Woodson’s path into the Hall of Fame.

Even so, at 5’9″ Thomas is considered by some to be on the verge of being to short for the NFL.

WalterFootball.com, arguably the best site for NFL mock drafts, put out their rookie forecast for the Steelers 2013 draft class and they believe that Thomas’ height could negatively affect his NFL career.

Thomas (5-9, 213), is extremely short and that was a factor in him having zero passes broken up as a senior. Tight ends and receivers can make receptions over him. That issue could prove to be a liability in matching up on pass-receiving tight ends in the NFL, a primary responsibility for many safeties.

Thomas should, at the very least, develop into a good backup safety who contributes well on special teams. He could become a starter, but he has to prove that he can overcome the height issue first.

Of course, it is way to early to start talking about what these players will do during their NFL careers. Back in 2008 we all thought the Steelers had drafted a star running back in Rashard Mendenhall and a number one receiver in Limas Sweed and we all saw how that played out.

Some listings have Thomas’ height at 5’10″, but as most fans know players heights and weights are mis-stated in most listings put out by the team to make them seem taller or bigger than they are. Or in the case of Casey Hampton to make him seem smaller than he was.

It will be interesting to see how Thomas’ size looks when standing next to Polamalu during training camp. Polamalu came out of college at 5’10″, 215 pounds and ran a 4.40 forty yard dash. Thomas, on the other hand, measured in at 5’9″, 213 pounds and ran a 4.37 forty. That one inch doesn’t seem like it would make a huge difference is his ability to have success in the NFL, but you never know.

Also, if Thomas looks to be the same size as Polamalu than there shouldn’t be much to worry about. Thomas seems to have his head on straight and is striving for greatness. With Polamalu and Ryan Clark as his teachers he has a good path to get to that point.

During pre-Draft analysis Thomas was compared to former-Colts hard-hitting safety Bob Sanders. When healthy, and it was rare for him to stay healthy, Sanders was one of the top safeties in the NFL. Sanders is only 5’8″, but it was injuries not his height that derailed his NFL career.

As WalterFootball.com stated his height could be an issue and if it changes his ability to be a starter in the NFL it would be rather disappointing. As of now though there is no reason to believe that he can’t excel in the NFL as a full-time starter when Polamalu and Clark leave the Steelers.

Also, just to add WalterFootball.com said in their post that Thomas had no pass deflections in 2012 as a senior. Sport-reference.com has Thomas listed with two pass deflections in 2012 and 7 in his career. It’s also important to remember that Thomas was used close to the line in most of Syracuse’s defensive sets.

It would be hard for any player to rack up pass deflections and interceptions when they are used close to the line in run defense and to rush the quarterback. Luckily for Thomas he has Polamalu in front of him and will have time to adapt and learn more coverage skills before hitting the field as part of the Steelers defense.

However, with Clark set to be a free agent after the 2013 season and Polamalu nearing the end of his career there may be a safety spot open sooner, rather than later, for Thomas. The other young safety that Thomas will be working with during training camp is Robert Golden, who was an undrafted rookie free agent last season.

Golden and Thomas could be the future at safety for the Steelers, but both players have a long ways to go before they hit the starting line-up or become as well known as Clark and Polamalu.